The bank will also ramp up support for underprivileged seniors

[SINGAPORE] DBS on Saturday (Mar 15) announced a range of year-long measures for its customers to commemorate SG60.

 

Many of the measures are &ldquo 60-themed&rdquo , including S$0.60 grocery deals and 60 per cent off selected attractions. 

 

Lim Him Chuan, DBS Singapore country head, said it is &ldquo important to commemorate this SG60 year by continuing to give back to fellow Singaporeans and residents&rdquo , noting that the bank has been a part of the country&rsquo s &ldquo nation-building years&rdquo over the decades. 

 

From Saturday until Jun 30, customers using the POSB Everyday Card and PAssion POSB Debit Card can buy a 1 kg pack of rice and 500 ml bottle of oil for S$0.60 each at any Sheng Siong supermarket. Redemptions are capped to the first 50,000 customers for each item per month. 

 

From Jul 1 to Sep 30, these customers can buy meals at participating food and beverage outlets &ndash many of which are &ldquo local heritage brands&rdquo , Lim noted &ndash for S$0.60. 

 

In the last tranche of measures, from Oct 1 to Dec 31, customers using those cards can receive 60 per cent discounts on selected attractions.

 

Details of the participating merchants and attractions will be announced at a later date. 

 

Additionally, Housing and Development Board (HDB) homeowners can access lower monthly mortgage payments this year with the POSB HDB three-year Fixed Rate Home Loan package, with an all-in interest rate of 2.55 per cent per annum &ndash lower than the current HDB concessionary rate of 2.6 per cent per annum. Homeowners can also make partial prepayments without incurring additional charges. 

 

DBS will provide a one-time cash bonus of up to S$310 to customers who credit their salaries into a DBS or POSB account for three consecutive months from the month of registration. It will also be offered to these customers that link their accounts to Paynow using their NRIC/FIN and mobile number. 

 

This cash bonus is for customers who have not credited their salary with DBS or POSB, or had prior PayNow-registered accounts between Sep 1, 2024, and Feb 28. It also applies to customers who switch their salary crediting accounts to DBS or POSB.

 

The bank will announce support measures for small businesses in the coming months. 

 

DBS will also ramp up support for underprivileged seniors &ndash particularly in aged towns such as Ang Mo Kio, Queenstown and Bedok. 

 

Lim said: &ldquo We are going to rally our colleagues in Singapore, together with DBS Foundation, to come together and befriend senior citizens and provide them with more support to improve their physical and social well-being.&rdquo  

 

This includes initiatives to improve seniors&rsquo nutrition and deepen social connections. 

 

Much of DBS Foundation&rsquo s efforts to give back to the community focus on seniors, as Singapore has an ageing population.

 

Boosting financial literacy in the headlines

The SG60 measures were announced at POSB&rsquo s third Support Your Heartlands carnival, which took place at Tiong Bahru Plaza on Saturday. 

 

This community engagement initiative promotes financial literacy to families and seniors in the heartlands. 

 

To collect stamps and redeem a goodie bag, participants played a &ldquo Needs and Wants&rdquo board game to learn about saving, and spun a wheel to answer a question about financial literacy. They also played a game mimicking a mini-mart to learn about budgeting and read displays about anti-scam measures and saving for retirement. 

 

&ldquo The rising trend of scams is something to be aware of, so it is important that as a responsible bank, we are here to promote this awareness to people,&rdquo Lim added. 

 

The bank will continue to host such carnivals and roadshows in more neighbourhoods to make digital and financial education accessible to more people.